Chapter 1985: The Problem Caused By The Stargazers

In Shang Xia’s memory, although the Big Dipper Formation was a widely accepted concept, he vaguely recalled that it was possible for the formation to possess nine stars, with two additional stars known as the Left and Right Auxiliary Stars. They were rarely visible, which gave rise to the original saying of the seven visible stars that made up the dipper and two hidden stars.

According to ancient legends, if someone ever caught sight of these two hidden stars, it would bring them longevity.

Shang Xia had always found the legend interesting. When he added the two relatively dim hidden stars while adjusting the Big Dipper Formation, it had simply been a coincidence that the two stars happened to be nearby and conveniently positioned. That was why he moved them to where the Left and Right Auxiliary Stars were said to be.

However, shortly after placing the two hidden stars in position, Shang Xia immediately noticed a subtle change occurring in the Big Dipper Star Origin in his dantian.

Not only had his inner qi become more refined following the completion of the adjustment to the Big Dipper Formation, but an incredibly pure surge of life force had also emerged.

The life force was not confined to his dantian. It quickly began to permeate and integrate into his entire body. Shang Xia soon realized he was undergoing a seemingly subtle, yet very noticeable transformation.

His lifespan was increasing!

Although the amount of life added wasn’t much compared to the nearly 1,000 years he had as a Sage, any increase in lifespan was inherently precious, sometimes even considered priceless.

What was even more shocking was that Shang Xia could clearly sense that beyond the lifespan he personally gained from this vitality merging into his body, he could also use the assistance of the Big Dipper Formation... Specifically, the assistance of the Left and Right Auxiliary Stars to continue refining that thread of vitality within his dantian through his self created special art. The vitality refined that way could be extracted!

In other words, he could gift a refined thread of vitality-rich inner qi to someone else to extend their life!

It was almost unbelievable!

Shang Xia was certain that if this secret ever got out, it would stir up a huge storm among every cultivator in the Chaotic Sea of Stars!

Of course, with his current cultivation, strength, and status, even if his secret was exposed, there would be few who could do anything about it.

Even if someone tried to replicate his martial path and tried to increase their lifespan by controlling and harvesting it from the Left and Right Auxiliary Stars, they would have to be a Sage to even have a chance. Or they could try to control Shang Xia to make him their servant, but that would be a pipe dream. Once a Sage was born, who among them would willingly be controlled? Who could even control a Sage?

Originally, Shang Xia had planned to return to the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field immediately after completing the adjustments of the stars. After all, the war for the Essence Du Heavenly Field could erupt at any moment, and if he wasn’t present, Kou Chongxue alone might not be able to secure enough benefits.

However, the refinement of his vitality-infused inner qi within his dantian forced him to remain a while longer.

He needed to study it more thoroughly.

As more and more of the vitality-rich inner qi merged into his body, and until that process completely ended, Shang Xia gradually realized that his lifespan had increased by nearly 20 years!

Later, as the Big Dipper Star Origin in his dantian continued to refine more energy, the newly generated vitality-rich inner qi would no longer merge into his body.

That meant that the life force he was producing had become useless to him, but it could still be extracted and used to extend someone else’s life by close to 20 years.

At the same time, Shang Xia came to a realization. In order to merge another 20 years of lifespan into himself, he would likely need to replace both the Left and Right Auxiliary Stars!

However, the matter was far from urgent. Shang Xia still had close to a thousand years of life remaining, and who could say what cultivation level he might reach after a millennium? Would he not gain more lifespan then?

Aside from the Big Dipper Formation and the two hidden stars, there was also a satellite star near the star in the Mizar position, though Shang Xia usually considered it to be part of the Mizar Star itself.

When Shang Xia had been looking for the stars, he had also adjusted a satellite star near it. That star did, in fact, benefit his Big Dipper Star Origin.

After adjusting all the stars that made up the Big Dipper Formation and were linked to his Big Dipper Star Origin in his dantian to as perfect a state as possible, Shang Xia finally concluded his round of operations and began his journey back toward the Heaven Observation Star Region.

However, as he neared the Heaven Observation Star Region, he felt that there was something off about his return path. Yet, the Star Compass still stubbornly pointed in a certain direction.

Fortunately, Shang Xia was, after all, a high-level Sage. His cultivation realm remained the fundamental pillar of his martial path. Although his intuition and the Star Compass now appeared to conflict or contradict one another, it was not enough to completely distort his judgment, nor could it make him lose his way in the void or prevent him from locating the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field.

Still, Shang Xia wanted to figure out exactly what had gone wrong.

Luckily, he wasn’t far from the 6th Starsea Market. Although his divine soul had been disturbed and the Star Compass seemed warped by some unknown power, the surrounding void remained stable. For someone like Shang Xia, who was familiar with the area, he could rely on his sense of sight to filter out the false cues and find the market’s true location.

But when he arrived outside the 6th Starsea Market, he saw through the void that hundreds of Star Ships of various sizes were densely parked around the perimeter. Shang Xia immediately realized the situation was more troublesome than he had anticipated.

Sure enough, as soon as he entered the market, Song Zhen, having received word, personally came to meet him in secret.

"What’s going on?" Shang Xia asked immediately. "Why are there so many Star Ships gathered outside the Starsea Market? And why are none of them leaving on long-distance voyages?"

Song Zhen gave a helpless smile before explaining, "It’s not that these Star Ships want to stay parked outside the market. It’s that if they attempt to sail through the void, they’ll very likely become completely lost and unable to find their way back to their Heavenly Fields."

Shang Xia raised his brow in surprise. "How could that be? What exactly happened?"

Song Zhen hurriedly answered, "Honestly speaking, it’s because the Stargazers of the Stargazing Hall and those from the Heavenly Star Palace joined forces to challenge the Stargazers of the Four Essence Heavenly Field. Their contest has completely disrupted and distorted the stars throughout the void, making it impossible for many Star Ships sailing through the void to determine their positions accurately."

"At first, their duel was limited to the Heaven Observation Star Region. But as the conflict escalated and spiraled out of control, the distortion of the stars began rapidly spreading beyond the Heaven Observation Region. Any Star Ship affected by it could no longer use stars or even their Stargazers on board for accurate navigation."

Shang Xia nodded in sudden realization but quickly asked with a hint of doubt, "Even if their contest caused some impact, I remember that after the decline of the Heaven Observation Sect, interstellar communication between Star Regions and Heavenly Fields didn’t weaken just because of a lack of stargazing legacy. Surely they have other means of positioning while sailing through the void?"

Song Zhen flattered, “Sage Shang, you’re a genius. You got straight to the heart of the problem.”

Shang Xia waved his hand and chuckled, "Cut the flattery. Speak.”

Song Zhen hesitated slightly, as if considering how to phrase his explanation. Eventually, he continued, "There are mainly two alternate methods. One is guidance via world origin, and the other is through the use of Star Charts. They often contain paths that were explored already and remain largely undiscovered by others to this day."